Colorful carrots have been chosen as the vegetable of the year 2023.
CARROTS ARE A favorite among Finns: versatile in cooking, inexpensive, tasty and healthy. They can be used in a variety of dishes, both raw and cooked. The vegetable of the year was chosen by the Puutarhaliitto ry and the Kotimaiset Kasvikset ry.
Snack on a carrot
Carrots are popular for their mild but slightly sweet taste. The sweetness is especially pronounced in cooked carrots, but it also gives way to flavors from other foods. Many people enjoy carrots in moist carrot sauces. It strengthens teeth when eaten alone. In addition to taste, carrots add healthy fiber and vitamins to the diet, the most notable of which is the vitamin A precursor beta-carotene. Carrots are also low in calories and high in fiber. They also contain vitamin K and folate.
In the body, beta-carotene is naturally converted to fat-soluble vitamin A, which plays an important role in eye health, nervous system function, skin health and growth, and inflammation prevention. Among other things, this vitamin protects skin cells from sunlight and other oxygen radicals.
300 farmers
In Finland, carrots are grown professionally by about 300 farmers on more than 1,700 hectares of land. Organic carrots are grown by almost 40 companies. Carrots are the second most popular vegetable after potatoes, with nine kilograms consumed per capita each year. Most of the carrots on sale are grown domestically. The 2021 harvest was a staggering 75.5 million kilos, part of which was supplied to the food industry as raw material for ready meals.
The carrot (Daucus carota) is a biennial plant of the nightshade family. In its first year of growth, it produces a root, which is botanically a tuber. This underground part collects food reserves, which the plant uses to overwinter and flower the following year, producing seeds. Carrots are closely related to cumin, daisies and parsnips.
Carrots grow wild further south in Europe, but the Finnish winter is too harsh for this biennial plant. Carrots have been cultivated in Finland since the 17th century, but their roots go back to Central Asia, where wild carrots were selected to produce strong-rooted specimens suitable for cultivation.
Originally, carrots were mainly purple, dark or white in color. The Dutch succeeded in breeding the orange carrot, which is the most popular of these varieties and also reflects the color of the Orange-Nassau royal family of the Dutch Royal House. In addition to orange carrots, white, yellow and dark red carrots are also grown in Finland and sold as ready-to-eat varieties.
Multi-purpose carrots
Carrots are easy to snack just as they are. It is an excellent choice for the shopping basket as it can take on many shapes and tastes on the table, both raw and cooked. Carrots have an excellent shelf life in the refrigerator, so it’s always a good idea to have them on hand as a “backup” food. What’s more, if you find a carrot in the fridge that has sprouted a bit, it’s often still perfectly good.
What can you use carrots for? The first things that come to mind are carrot salad and rosolli, a Finnish cuisine, which basically is a cold side dish made of cooked, diced root vegetables traditionally made with carrots.
Juicy carrot paste, carrot cake and tender carrot soup are also familiar to many. But carrots add a succulent touch to almost any dish. They can be used to lighten the diet or as a substitute for more expensive ingredients. Baby carrots and dried root vegetables can be snacked on as they are.
Carrots are equally at home in sweet jams and savory entrees. They can be used in their entirety, from the root to the turnip, which makes an excellent turnip pesto. Carrots can also be used to flavor fish and meat in sauces and stews. As a side dish for a main course, you can enjoy fresh vegetables with carrot strips and other seasonal vegetables. Summer carrots can also be grilled, drizzled with oil and honey, and seasoned with a variety of herbs.
Carrot rolls are a delicious breakfast dish, but carrot sauce is just as good in a porridge pot, adding flavor and color to oatmeal. For a spicy flavor, add almond slivers, cinnamon, and syrup.
Agriculture depends on good soil
From a farmer’s point of view, carrots are not the easiest crop to grow. It is rather demanding in terms of soil type, as carrots grow stunted and short-lived on clay soils and rocky areas. Soils that are rich and retain moisture are best. Water management must be good as carrots become stunted if water is not evenly distributed.
Adequate plant density and emergence are key to producing a quality crop. Carrot growers must also be vigilant against pests. In particular, carrot weevils cause yield loss. Care must be taken during storage to ensure that carrots remain as crisp and healthy as possible well into the spring.
Source: Puutarhaliitto ry
